A week after launching a new website designed for the public to be easier to use, the Tarrant Appraisal District's website is once again offline due to an unspecified issue.
The Tarrant Appraisal District assigns property values for ad valorem taxation purposes for jurisdictions throughout Tarrant County and its website is routinely used by property owners and real estate agents.
On Thursday, the TAD said an unspecified network disruption led the agency to "secure the network." The agency said they were working with "leading independent cybersecurity experts" to assist with the response and the restoration process.
Joe Don Bobbitt, chief appraiser for the Tarrant Appraisal District, told NBC 5 on Thursday afternoon that they learned of the "disruption" on Thursday morning and "immediately initiated an investigation into the incident." Part of that investigation will determine what's happened, but Bobbitt said they're also "working to prevent anything similar from occurring in the future."
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"At this time, we are limited in the information we can provide. We understand that not immediately having all the facts may be frustrating, but we need time to work through this with the specialist teams we have engaged," Bobbit told NBC 5.
The chief appraiser said they have no reason to believe sensitive information was involved in the "disruption," but that if that changes they will take appropriate steps to notify those involved.
NBC 5 staffers tried to access the agency's page several times Thursday morning and afternoon and found the page either completely inaccessible or displaying only the words, "hello world," which is likely a default page from the website's server.
Sarena Smith, with Century 21 Alliance Properties, spoke to NBC 5 on Thursday and reported seeing the same thing.
"I was writing a lease and I needed to write the legal description into that and that's the source I use," said Smith. "It was just a white screen and in tiny, tiny writing it just said 'hello world."
A check at 2:15 p.m. showed the site's home page had been restored but that searching for accounts was still unavailable. A message was added to the top of the page saying all ARB hearings scheduled for Thursday were canceled due to technical difficulties and would be rescheduled.
"Please know that our team is working diligently to restore our systems and data in the safest and most secure manner possible," the TAD said in a statement.
Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare, who was critical of the agency and high valuations for property, issued a statement on X Thursday afternoon.
"It is frustrating to hear about another security issue facing the Tarrant Appraisal District. I know they are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. It is imperative that TAD keep the public informed about the situation and ensure private data is protected. With a new Board and a new Chief Appraiser, I'm hopeful they will get this situation fixed, as well as the other problems caused by the previous regime at TAD," O'Hare tweeted.
TAD RUSHES LAUNCH OF NEW SITE AFTER DATABASE FAILURE
The trouble Thursday comes just a week after the agency was forced to switch to a new website earlier than planned following a database failure. The TAD said they had intended to run the new and old sites simultaneously for another two weeks but had to cut that short after the crash.
Bobbitt said last week that the new site was not the cause of the database failure and that the new website "should provide a much better experience to the public."
In a statement released last week, the new agency said the new site featured improved layout, navigation and functionality for users searching for property information or related documents.
In recent years there has been a sharp rise in property values across North Texas and, as a result, a rise in people protesting those appraisals. In early 2023, the TAD released a feature on its website that was supposed to improve the appeal process but the feature was not functional for weeks.
In August 2023 the TAD Board fired an IT administrator who was secretly recorded saying, “I’m OK with creating a false narrative that distances the truth from the media,” in reference to the ongoing website problems. Later that month, the Tarrant County Commissioners Court scheduled a vote of ‘No Confidence’ for then-chief appraiser Jeff Law who eventually resigned from the agency.
In December 2023, the agency said they found malicious software in their computer system but found no evidence of a data breach.
